DIGITAL GEOLOGIC MAPS AS A MEETING GROUND FOR GEOGRAPHY AND GEOLOGY

Geology, Physical Geography and other academic and professional disciplines share a common spatial approach to problems of land and earth materials use. This common approach can be an important meeting ground for these disciplines, especially with the increased utility that digital geological maps and GIS offer with respect to more traditional representations of spatial data.

More than 700 digitally vectorized 7.5 minute geological maps have been created by the Kentucky Geological Survey (KGS) for the purpose of allowing spatial analyses to be performed on geologic data. The Dept. of Geography and Geology at Western Kentucky University (WKU) has been able to take advantage of this extraordinary set of digital maps and has been incorporating them into various aspects of research and the core curriculum.

Following are three examples of uses: (1) The incorporation of digital bedrock geology to an interactive campus GIS map allows the user to recognize geological formations in outcrop on campus, in addition to evaluating safety issues, parking, ingress-egress issues, sewer, steam and power lines. The combination of these features is especially important on a campus with an ambitious building and growth plan. Students from departments such as Engineering and Geography and Geology, benefit from evaluating these data simultaneously. (2) Graduate students have mapped in missing structure contours using the digital maps and online geophysical well logs from the KGS website, and used the digital maps and online resources to identify stratigraphic relationships in Mississippian rocks. The access to data and relative ease in incorporating them into the map are an important asset that digital maps provide. (3) GeoTutor is an example of a stand-alone, custom GIS, developed in a GIS class at Western Kentucky University. GeoTutor allows digitally vectorized geologic data to be examined in combinations of layers (topography, bedrock geology, faults, surface waters, etc.), and also utilizes powerful tools such as renderers, buffers, and intersects, which facilitate the identification of physical relationships. GeoTutor has been successfully used in geology classes at WKU to evaluate relationships between bedrock geology, surficial hydrology and topography, and manipulate the layered nature of data sets on geological maps.